UK weather: Woman dead and sailor missing as storms batter UK

A woman has died and a sailor is still missing after storms battered much of
the UK, as flood alerts are issued across the country

By Claire Carter, and agencies

8:27AM GMT 19 Dec 2013

A woman has died and a sailor is still missing after rain and gale force winds battered much of Britain.

Winds of up to 90mph are forecast for parts of Northern Ireland and western Scotland while flood warnings are in place in the South West and the Midlands.

The Met Office said today will be windy and warnings for ice have been issued for parts of Wales and the West Midlands.

A 23-year-old woman died in the Republic of Ireland when a tree fell on her car near Mullingar in Co Westmeath and a search for the sailor, who fell overboard from a ship on the River Trent in north Lincolnshire, was called off on Wednesday night.

The Met Office said the storrm is moving to the north of the UK but winds are expected to be less strong and much of the country will have showers (Photo: Photopress Belfast)

A 19-year-old man was also injured and taken to hospital when his car was hit by a falling tree in Warwickshire.

The Met Office said the storm is moving to the north of the UK but winds are expected to be less strong and much of the country will have showers.

The Environment Agency has issued flood warnings and said rivers in Somerset and Devon are liable to flooding.

Strong winds and floods are causing disruption to trains in the south of England, particularly on CrossCountry and South West Trains routes.

Calum MacColl, a forecaster at the Met Office, said the weekend was expected to have some showers but to be fairly bright, particularly in the south.

He said: "The start of the day will see cloudy weather in central and eastern parts of the country. It will be breezy but winds will not be on the scale we saw them on Wednesday.

"It will feel rather chilly."

However some of the rain could cause travel chaos for the Christmas getaway this weekend.

Arriva Trains Wales, CrossCountry, First Great Western, First Capital Connect and South West Trains were all reporting delays on Thursday morning, with Basingstoke particularly affected.

Two South West Trains hit trees blown down by the gales on Wednesday evening in Devon and the New Forest, and drivers had to be rescued from their cars in Cornwall as floods swept across the roads. Gusts of up to 85mph an hour were recorded in Plymouth.

A mobile flood response unit has also been launched in the Isle of Wight, equipped with a digger, floodlights and 'gelbags', which are similar to sandbags.

The AA said Friday and Monday are expected to be the busiest days on the roads as people get away for Christmas, but as the break is spread over a number of days they do not anticipate as much congestion as in previous years.

Tony Rich, AA patrol of the year, said: "With Christmas and New Year falling on a Wednesday, it’s expected that many people will start a two-week break tomorrow.

“While this will help stagger getaway traffic – on what is usually one of the busier periods on the roads – heavy rain and wind currently forecast for northern and western areas could cause some disruption. Keep tuned to the weather and traffic reports and, if it’s bad, allow more time for your journey."

More than 7,000 people in Northern Ireland were left without power last night, though most have now been reconnected, with another 3,500 affected in north-west England and almost 900 without power in south Wales.

Coastguards and an RAF helicopter were last night searching for a a 45-year-old man, believed to be a foreign national, who fell overboard from a small cargo ship moored on the River Trent.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said the man was working with ropes on the MV Sea Melody when he appeared to become entangled and was pulled over the side where he disappeared.

A helicopter from RAF Leconfield in East Yorkshire began a search and was joined by a coastguard team from Hull, but the search was called off because of gale force winds, and cold, driving rain, the MCA said.

Mike Puplett, Humber Coastguard watch manager, said: “We understand that the crewman was not wearing a life jacket and, in these conditions particularly, I would say this should have been an essential bare minimum of safety equipment."

The search was expected to resume today.

The weather also caused Sheffield Wednesday’s match against Wigan, at Hillsborough Stadium, to be called off last night after puddles appeared on the playing surface. Stoke City’s match against Manchester United was also suspended.